10 Best Ted Talks on Building Workplace Gratitude

Learn how to practice gratitude in the workplace with these inspirational Ted Talks. Photo via Nate Grigg, Flickr

Building a culture of workplace gratitude could be the best thing you ever do for your business. In fact, author and speaker Toni Powell calls gratitude at work the key to success in “Why Gratitude in the Workplace?”

In her TEDx Talk, “A Love Story,” she says her husband used gratitude to transform her life. By appreciating the things she did, he taught her to think positively about herself and to look for good in the world rather than complaining and criticizing. Her husband was grateful for the smallest things which overtime changed her negative thinking.

That’s all it took. You can do the same thing and instill workplace gratitude. And Powell says:

“Gratitude has the rather extraordinary power to change just about every aspect of life—in very surprising ways.”

When you practice workplace gratitude you transform relationships, minimize complaints, and see satisfaction levels skyrocket. The effect is profound and long-lasting, Powell says, because gratitude rewires the brain to see and process the world differently. It works like this, she explains. Gratitude:

“Happy brains are 31% more productive than negative, stressed or neutral brains, and dopamine—released when we’re happy—turns on the brain’s learning centers.”

You and your employees can train your brains to look for positivity and happiness by, among other things, writing down three things you’re grateful for everyday for 30 days.

TED Talks: building workplace gratitude

TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design) is a nonprofit devoted to spreading ideas, usually in the form of short, powerful talks (18 minutes or less). One of those ideas is extolling workplace gratitude. Here are eight more of the best talks related to workplace gratitude that we’ve found. Give one or more a listen—these experts have studied the topic and give you not only concepts and scientific evidence, but hands-on ways to build a culture of workplace gratitude.

Some of these videos focus on gratitude generally while others are specific to workplace gratitude, happiness, and engagement. All provide useful advice about fostering gratitude and happiness—which, in the workplace, spell productivity and a better bottom line.

Happiness researcher Robert Biswas-Diener observes that one reason people are unhappy is that they project happiness on goals they haven’t yet achieved. But by remembering past happy moments, you can recreate happy moments and you’ll experience them again.

Jennifer Moss, co-founder of Plasticity, enterprise software for culture performance, notes that happiness is a choice. The way we look at and feel about things affects our happiness, and we can train ourselves (and employees) to feel positively about things.

Behavioral economist Dan Ariely says that what motivates us to work is making constant progress and feeling a sense of purpose—not money or even joy. If you show your employees your gratitude for their efforts, they’ll feel valued and motivated. But it’s all too easy to crush motivation through lack of workplace gratitude.

Psychologist Kelly McGonigal cites new research suggesting that stress may only be bad for you if you believe it is. She urges viewing stress as a positive, and says that caring for and supporting others reduces stress and improves heart health. It’s a great reason to show appreciation and workplace gratitude.

Leadership

One of the best and most effective ways to become a better leader is by learning from others who’ve come before you, he writes. These videos–The Best TED Talks For Leaders—give you inspiration, motivation, or actionable advice on being a better leader for your company, your employees, and yourself.

About the Blog: The gThankYou! Team believes happiness and engagement are key ingredients to a successful workplace. That's why we give workplace leaders advice and insights to build a culture of gratitude. We invite you to explore our blog and discover ways to celebrate and build successful workplaces.